Accommodations

The Las Vegas offer an exciting, action packed getaway with a variety of condos, vacation homes, hotels, and resorts. Choose an accommodation near any of Las Vegas's local attractions that offers comfort while making the most of the beautiful desert and attractions at affordably priced rates.

View our Las Vegas Vacation Rentals or Las Vegas Resorts

Activities

Just outside Las Vegas, Hoover Dam and Lake Meade have been a tourist destination since its completion in the 1930's. The tallest dam in the world when it was built, Hoover Dam provides the electricity needed to power one of the worlds most energetic cities. Fremont Street in the center of downtown Las Vegas is a light and musical show like none other in the world. A permanent canopy has been constructed to cover the casino-lined street with two million lights and a sound system that provides shows in the evening hours. The Secret Garden and Dolphin Habitat is a tropical paradise where you will find many exotic animal breeds housed, from elephants, panthers and leopards to Siegfried and Roy's rare and enchanting white tigers. Visitors are also invited to visit the intriguing Dolphin Habitat. Red Rock Canyon is named for the 3,000 foot sandstone cliffs that can be viewed from a 13-mile paved loop. Rangers conduct guided hikes where visitors may run across burros, big horn sheep or desert tortoises.

Events

During March, NASCAR roars into Las Vega, where more than 100,000 spectators are anticipated at the Nextel Cup UAW-DaimlerChrysler 400 and Busch Series Sam's Town 300. The Age of Chivalry Renaissance Festival is held each October. There will be musicians, shows, swordplay, juggling, military presentations, parades, Shakespearean plays, dancers and dance lessons, Renaissance variety acts, jousts and more. Over 200 artisans and craftsmen will demonstrate and sell their wares. Late September brings Bike Fest to Las Vegas, with a motorcycle show, the world's strongest biker competition, rock concerts on Freemont Street and a custom bike show with more than 100 entries. The Annual Downtown Hoedown kicks off the National Finals Rodeo with music from top country singers. This fun December event has been held since 1986 on the night before the first rodeo performance.

Golfing

With stunning desert scenery and warm weather year round, Las Vegas is the ideal place for your next golf holiday. This is Southwest golf at its best since there are so many options here with over 40 courses, even during the winter.

History

A young scout named Rafael Rivera was the first person of European ancestry to look upon the valley in 1829. He discovered a valley with abundant wild grasses growing and a plentiful water supply that eliminated the need to go around the desert. The valley is named Las Vegas, Spanish for "The Meadows." In 1844, John C. Fremont arrived in Las Vegas and kept a journal describing the two springs he found. These writings were very popular and lured many individuals to the area. Members of the Mormon Church choose Las Vegas as the site to build a fort in 1855, halfway between Salt Lake City and Los Angeles. Abandoned two years later, the remains of the Mormon Fort  can still be seen at the intersection of Las Vegas Boulevard and Washington Avenue.

The first successful settler, Octavius Decatur Gass, established a ranch that flourished throughout the rest of the nineteenth century. Nevada was admitted as the 36th state in 1864, and gold and silver were discovered shortly after. The mining brough the railroads to the area, and the availability of water makes Las Vegas an important stop for the trains. Las Vegas was founded in 1905, when the railroad auctiioned off 110 acres of land in 700 plots. In 1931, two things happened that caused the young town to begin a phenomenal streak of growth. The first was the legalization of gambling in the state of Nevada, and the second was the start of construction on the Hoover Dam.